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EU Blue Economy Observatory
  • Report

Blue Economy and Innovation

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Publication date
7 January 2022

Description

There is no unique definition for the term Blue Economy. In the narrowest sense, the term Blue Economy refers to the collection of a number of economic sectors connected to the ocean, seas and coasts, as e.g. defined in Bilsen et al. (2019) or De Backer (2017).This description includes sectors directly active in the marine and coastal environment (such as fishing or maritime transport) as well as land-based sectors with a clear link to marine activities (such as shipbuilding or port activities). The Blue Economy is thus a multi-sectoral and constantly, dynamically evolving part of the economy, where newer sectors such as renewable offshore energy and blue biotechnology, are standing side by side with the more traditional sectors like fishing and maritime transport. Broader than just the economic aspect, it can be argued that the Blue Economy doesn’t only include industries, but also the natural resources and ecosystem services provided by the ocean (such as sea food production or CO2 capture) (OECD 2016). The origin of this broader interpretation of the Blue Economy can be traced back to the United Nations Conference of 2012 (RIO +20) (Eikeset et al. 2018) 1 . Also the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD 2014, 2018), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO 2018), the World Bank (2017) and the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy (Stuchtey 2020) are examples of organisations that follow this broader interpretation, with two pillars within the Blue Economy: the ecological and the economic aspects. 

A similar evolution is noticeable at the European level where the Blue Growth strategy, as launched in 2012 (COM (2012) 494), has evolved over the years towards the development of a sustainable Blue Economy as recently confirmed in a new communication (COM (2021) 240). In this last communication, the Blue Economy is put forward as one of the carriers of both the Green Deal (COM (2019) 640) and the European recovery strategy (COM (2020) 442). The ocean and its economy are seen therein as indispensable to achieving the environmental and climate goals. In this context, the Blue Economy is also an essential element in the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined in the United Nations Agenda 2030. At first, there is a link with SDG 14 ‘Life below water - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development’. There is also a link with other SDGs, such as responsible production and consumption (SDG 12), affordable and clean energy (SDG 7) and zero hunger (SDG 2). A literature review on the link between the Blue Economy and the SDGs was made by Lee et al. (2020). Innovation is crucial for both the established and emerging marine and maritime sectors in order to grow in a sustainable way (see, among others, OECD 2019). In this context, the North Sea Vision 2050 (De Backer 2017) promotes not only technological innovations, but also social and policy innovation

Blue Economy 15 and Innovation Report

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  • 7 JANUARY 2022
Blue Economy and Innovation